It started more than a decade ago, on a rutted football field in northern Sacramento, with the Natomas Jr. Nighthawks, with an 8-year-old left tackle being flagged for an ineligible receiver downfield penalty in his first game.

It continued Thursday at San Diego State, which announced it had signed Dakarai Allen and D’Erryl Williams, teammates at Sheldon High in Sacramento, to national letters of intent to play basketball beginning next season.

Or as Aztec assistant coach and recruiting coordinator Tony Bland put it: “When you have Oakland and all those Bay Area places, there’s a whole bunch of talent and people think you don’t need to go to Sacramento. But the secret’s out. I think when I get off the plane there now, I’ll see a lot more college shirts (from recruiters).”

Few out-of-town programs have cornered a recruiting market like SDSU has with the state capital. First, the Aztecs got Chase Tapley out of Sacramento High. Then Thames a year later as a transfer from Washington State. Now Allen and Williams.

Sheldon High has a third Division I prospect, guard Darin Johnson, who signed with Washington on Thursday. SDSU was among his finalists as well.

None of it, probably, happens if Tapley doesn’t break his leg – or if he hadn’t blissfully charged downfield from his left tackle position in his first game with the Jr. Nighthawks.

Tapley was considered a high-major prospect as a sophomore, recruited by Baylor, UCLA, Cal and just about everybody else on the West Coast. Then his left leg snapped trying to dunk midway through the season and the phone stopped ringing.

“They all fell off,” Tapley said. “The only school that still wanted me was San Diego State.”

Tapley would become a four-year starter for the Aztecs and is 23 short of D.J. Gay’s career record for victories (105). He also would bring his personal point guard.

Tapley first met Thames as 8-year-olds on the Jr. Nighthawks peewee team. Thames was the star running back. Tapley, in Thames’ words, was “a little chubby kid” who blocked for him.

And who also didn’t understand that offensive lineman can’t wander downfield.

“When I got back to the huddle, everyone was yelling at me,” Tapley said. “X was the only guy who stood up for me. He was like, ‘It’s cool. He wasn’t here at practice. He didn’t know.’”

A friendship was kindled (Tapley threw the key block for Thames on the winning TD in a playoff game against the South Sac Vikings), and they remained close through high school. Thames, from Pleasant Grove High, initially committed to Washington State over Iowa State and – despite Tapley’s pleadings – SDSU.

“When I left Washington State after a year,” Thames said, “Chase recruited me again. I said, ‘Don’t worry, Chase. I’m coming this time.’”

A recruiting tree was sprouting. Thames’ younger brother, Malik, is close friends with Allen and no doubt sold him on SDSU. And Allen’s best friend since the seventh grade is Williams. Allen had already orally committed to SDSU in September, then accompanied Williams on his recruiting trip a month later; Williams committed before the weekend was over.

Allen is a rangy 6-foot-5 small forward that fits SDSU's mantra of long, athletic, versatile wings who play tenacious defense. ESPN, Scout.com and MaxPreps all rate him in their national Top 100. Bland calls him “the best one-on-one defender I’ve seen in a while” and reminiscent of former UCLA star Russell Westbrook in that “he doesn’t know how good he’s going to be yet.”

The Aztecs coaches began noticing Williams, a 6-3 combo guard who was the Sacramento Bee player of the year last season (ahead of Allen and Johnson), while recruiting Allen.

“Sometimes you go to look for gold,” Bland said, “and you find diamonds.”

In the end, it meant regular trips for Bland to California’s – and his – Gold Country.

“I feel like the lady at the Southwest ticket counter in Sacramento knew who I was,” Bland said. “The people at the hotel knew who I was. They knew what I ate for breakfast. I came down to the lobby one morning and she had my oatmeal with raisins all ready for me. I said, ‘Man, I’ve been here too much.’”